Environment

The future of coffee production is looking darker than the contents of your morning cup of joe. A deadly combination of climate change, disease and deforestation is gradually pushing a multi-billion-dollar industry right to the edge. Researchers at UK’s Kew Gardens have calculated that out of the 124 coffee species known to science, nearly 60

It’s been compared to crop circles, or the strange handiwork of aliens. Others say it looks like the Moon, if it somehow materialised in the chilly waters of the Presumpscot River. But this massive churning formation in the city of Westbrook, Maine isn’t evidence of something from outer space, but rather a bizarre and brilliant

We’ve had chances. Lots of chances. But humanity has a history of squandering chances, despite everything we know about climate change. Despite everything riding on us addressing it. As it happens, the odds may still be in our favour. A new study estimates there’s a 64 percent chance that peak global average temperature rise can

The world needs to rethink its plan for addressing climate change. That’s the assertion of political scientist Joshua S. Goldstein and energy engineer Staffan A. Qvist. On Friday, The Wall Street Journal published an essay in which the duo argues that we can’t address the global climate problem as quickly as needed using just renewables

Australia is sweltering through an intense heatwave this week that’s scorching the country from coast to coast with temperatures as high as 49.3 degrees Celsius (120.7 degrees Fahrenheit). In numerous locations, temperature records have already been broken, with minimum overnight temperatures in three towns of 33°C (91°F) showing even the night offers no escape from

Antarctic glaciers have been melting at an accelerating pace over the past four decades thanks to an influx of warm ocean water – a startling new finding that researchers say could mean sea levels are poised to rise more quickly than predicted in coming decades. The Antarctic lost 40 billion tons of melting ice to

Siberia’s wilderness is experiencing a new kind of gold rush. As melting permafrost gives up the bones of long extinct megafauna, a new breed of ivory hunter is cashing in on the remnants of creatures that vanished millennia ago. Trade in mammoth tusk isn’t illegal, and in China it’s actually viewed as an ethical alternative

George, a Hawaiian tree snail – also a 14-year-old local celebrity and the last known snail of his kind – will no longer be able to entertain school children, or eat tree fungus. He died on New Year’s Day, according to the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR). The death of George, and

It started in December, just before Christmas. Hundreds of dead perch were discovered floating along the banks of the Darling River – victims of a “dirty, rotten green” algae bloom spreading in the still waters of the small country town of Menindee, Australia. Things didn’t get better. The dead hundreds became dead thousands, as the

As Europe wilted in the sweltering, record-breaking harshness of summer 2018, strange things happened. Mysterious outlines of ancient societies revealed themselves across the seared landscape, but it’s not just traces of ghostly architecture resurfacing. So too are grim words of warning. Inscribed boulders known as ‘hunger stones’ are reappearing in Czechia after a prolonged drought afflicting

When China declares war, it means business. So when China announced an all-out blitz on pollution in the face of red alert smog levels so bad they can make entire skylines vanish, it was a big, progressive step. But a new study has revealed there’s also been an unexpected downside to the move. China’s official

Antarctica has a new hole. It’s more than a kilometre (just under 4,000 feet) deep, barely a hand-span or two in width, and ends in a body of water named Lake Mercer. Lake Mercer is what’s called a ‘lost’ lake, as it exists deep below the ice, making it inaccessible to usual experiments. Researchers can

Every unprofitable coal mine in the European Union must cease production by the first day of 2019, the date on which all public funds for the mines will come to an end. In Spain, that means that 26 coal mines are about to close up shop, according toReuters. This move away from coal is a refreshing

Earlier this year, researchers found a deposit of rare-earth minerals off the coast of Japan that could supply the world for centuries, according to a study. The study, published in the journal Nature in April 2018, says the deposit contains 16 million tons of the valuable metals. Rare-earth minerals are used in everything from smartphone batteries

No matter how much or how little attention you pay to climate change, there seem to be more and more moments lately when it becomes impossible to ignore the harsh reality of what we’re facing. 2018 was no exception. So, in case you missed any of this year’s doomy drama, here are some of the

Dogs, cats, or goldfish probably can’t have conversations with each other about times long gone by – it’s a feature we’ve thought was pretty much exclusive to humans. But a recent study is shaking up that idea, showing that orangutan mothers wait on average seven minutes after a potential predator is out of sight, before

You can add river erosion to the list of geological triggers capable of setting off an earthquake, according to new research: and it could help explain the reason why so many earthquakes occur far away from the edges of tectonic plates. Those slabs of rock, and the friction and pressure that builds up as they

Japan announced Wednesday that it is withdrawing from the International Whaling Commission and will resume commercial whale hunting next year, sparking swift condemnation from other governments and conservation groups. Tokyo argues that the IWC has failed to live up to its initial dual mandate in 1946 to find a balance between preserving whale stocks and

Above our heads, something is not right. Earth’s magnetic field is in a state of dramatic weakening – and according to mind-boggling research from earlier this year, this phenomenal disruption is part of a pattern lasting for over 1,000 years. Earth’s magnetic field doesn’t just give us our north and south poles; it’s also what

As the scale and impacts of climate change become increasingly alarming, meat is a popular target for action. Advocates urge the public to eat less meat to save the environment. Some activists have called for taxing meat to reduce consumption of it. A key claim underlying these arguments holds that globally, meat production generates more